THE EURO 2

Britain is contributing to the Greece bailout to the tune of £1.3billion, despite George Osborne's vows to the contrary. A long-standing pledge to the International Monetary Fund means we will still be paying out, even though direct contributions are being borne by the Eurozone. The Sun revealed last month that the UK's contribution to the IMF was doubling, taking our contribution to bailouts for basket case EU economies to more than £23billion. The IMF is paying £30billion of the £96billion rescue plan agreed by Eurozone leaders. Our slice of the IMF part works out at £1.3billion. The Treasury said, "We have a commitment to the IMF." (Source: The Sun, Jul/11)

Britain will be forced to scrap the National Health Service if it joins the euro. The European Central Bank, which manages the single currency, gave warning that free health care would have to be restricted to emergency services only, otherwise the cost would overwhelm European economies and lead to soaring inflation. Britain has one of the biggest tax-funded health services in the EU, with only a tiny proportion of treatments paid for privately. The report, in the Frankfurt-based ECB’s monthly bulletin, said that Britain’s ageing population would make state pensions, tax-funded health services and long-term care unaffordable in the future.

Tax rises to meet the extra demands would soon become politically unacceptable and the sums in question would be too large to borrow, the ECB said. The article, which is published under the ECB’s authority rather than being just a working paper by researchers, recommends swift reforms with patients paying for more private operations. Governments should distinguish between “essential, privately non-insurable and non-affordable services”, such as emergency treatment, and those where “private financing might be more efficient. Greater private involvement in health care financing can be achieved, in particular, through patient co-payments, as already implemented in a number of countries.”

British taxpayers and employers have just been hit by higher national insurance contributions introduced by the Chancellor to pay for more spending on the NHS. Although the extra cash is accompanied by reforms, these do not include any measures requiring private contributions by patients towards their care. The ECB’s report will be used by the campaign against euro membership as evidence that the single currency would dramatically reduce national sovereignty. Alan Milburn, the Health Secretary, who is in favour of Britain joining the euro, said the Government would never let the NHS be put at risk. “For as long as there is a Labour government the NHS will be funded from general taxation and health care available according to need and not the ability to pay,” his spokesman said.

Treasury officials said they were surprised by the report. “Taxation and public spending are matters for individual member states. While deficits are constrained by the requirements of the stability and growth pact, public finances in the UK are widely seen as being on a sustainable path, certainly when compared to most other European countries,” a spokesman said. He added that Mr Brown made a speech last year in which he concluded a tax-funded system was not only the fairest form of health care, but the most economically efficient. A spokesman for the anti-euro No campaign, said, “It has always been clear that joining the euro would put at risk the Government's spending commitments, but this endangers the entire NHS.”

Top Eurocrat Jose Manuel Barroso insisted that all EU nations must ultimately adopt the euro. The President of the European Commission predicted membership of the EU and the euro currency system would eventually become “the same thing.” It was seen as an indication that the 17 eurozone countries are set to dominate the EU with the muscle to make Britain accept their rule.

Mr Barroso said in Brussels, “In principle all member states of the European Union should be members of the euro. It’s an obligation of the treaties." Acknowledging Britain and Denmark had negotiated the right to opt out of the single currency, he added, “All the other member states have the legal obligation to join the euro area. So in the future the euro area and the EU will be basically the same thing.”

He also seemed to ridicule Britain remaining outside the euro zone. Questioned by a BBC journalist, he replied, “Ah, the British, what can I say?” Martin Callanan, leader of the Tory Euro-MPs in the European Parliament, said, “Mr Barroso has let slip his true vision of Europe and the euro, ‘You’ve all got to join, one size fits all, like it or lump it. Because we say so.’"

He added, "He acknowledges Britain’s legal right to an opt-out but tries to portray that as abnormal or perverse. Some rats may be happy aboard Mr Barroso’s sinking ship, but he must forgive us for not rushing to join them.” Wasn't this the plan all along? To take over all Banks and have control of every Countries economy! (Source: Daily Express, Nov/11)

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